1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for manufacturing rigid computer memory disc substrates and, more particularly, to a manufacturing apparatus that integrates a multitude of separate processes into a single process to manufacture rigid computer memory disc substrates.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The present invention relates to the manufacture of rigid computer memory disc substrates of the type which are used with a memory apparatus of a computer for storing data thereon. These substrates are typically made of an aluminum alloy, have an inner diameter of 1.576 inch, an outer diameter of 5.118 inch, and a thickness of 0.075 inch. The opposed surfaces of the substrates are coated with a magnetic coating for memory use.
Present methods used to manufacture rigid substrates for computer memory use typically involve several separate pieces of machinery in a serial, step-by-step process, each piece of machinery having its own operator. Thus, when a disc blank is initially received from an aluminum supplier, it is placed on a first machine (a lathe), for the purpose of sizing the outside and inside diameters, including adding edge chamfers. The aluminum disc is then placed on another machine (also typically a lathe), where both sides of the disc are faced. It is then common to use an oven for thermoflattening before the blanked disc is moved to polishing machines for final finishing. An array of measurement equipment is then used for final testing before the completed disc substrate is ready for magnetic coating.
This method of manufacturing rigid computer memory disc substrates has a number of disadvantages. First of all, the discs are stacked and unstacked at each process step by the equipment operator, thereby running the risk of handling damage to the discs. Periodically, discs are taken from the process flow and measured by quality control personnel, usually in a separate area, to assure that the discs are meeting specification requirements. If they are not within required tolerances, corrective action must be taken by the operator or by a maintenance technician. The operator of a specific machine often will also make some of the measurements on a sampling basis. Where the measurements are made periodically by the operator or the quality control personnel, there remains the risk of an unknown number of defective parts, caused by drift of machine adjustments, proceeding down the process flow before the machine maladjustment is discovered.